


never thought i'd see the day

by whitew0rms



Category: Polygon/McElroy Vlogs & Podcasts RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 00:46:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13135623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whitew0rms/pseuds/whitew0rms
Summary: "It's soft" Pat says, quietly as if speaking any louder will shock Brian, as if he's a wild animal. He might be right. "Your hair, I mean.” Pat pauses, seemingly contemplating his words. It’s something Brian hadn’t expected out of Pat, but he’s careful about his words. “You can come stay at my place tonight, if you like." Pat finally settles on and Brian feels his shoulders relax just that tiniest bit more, feels himself melt into Pat."Thank you" Brian says, and means it more than he usually does.





	never thought i'd see the day

**Author's Note:**

> Obvious disclaimer that none of this is real, I write for fun by myself, and that if this is about you or anyone you know, oh my god please god walk away. Also no last names, please, I'm trying to keep this thing hidden.
> 
> I didn't think I'd ever write anything like this again, but then Brian showed up, and well. If anyone reads this at all I'll be surprised (besides Jeff, who this is for). It's slow, and nothing happens, but it felt nice to write. 
> 
> I used to write on a different account on here, if any of you knew me from then, see if you can guess who it is. I love you all, and have yourselves a happy holidays.

Brian’s playing video games late in the office one night, because it's there, and there's a couch, and somehow it feels safer and smaller than his apartment, where he still hasn't entirely gotten to the way the dark paces across his room, or the particular creaks of the floorboards.

He's playing Stardew Valley, because he can, planting melons and harvesting hot peppers, and it's nice, and it's calming, and he feels at peace for at least a little bit.

The door creaks open, and Pat comes and sits next to him, and he doesn't say anything but he lets Brian lean his whole body against him, press himself close to him, like he knows that Brian has been missing the casual touches that come with living with people he knows and loves, rather than in an apartment, with people who are basically strangers.

When Pat starts tracing comforting patterns in Brian’s thigh, he releases a sigh he hadn’t even known he was holding in.

Brian finishes the day on stardew valley before turning his switch off, and turning the tv off with it, and then he lies down, and leaves his head in Pat’s lap. Pat chuckles softly, and Brian can feel the vibrations in his back, feel Pat's body moving near him. it's a strange intimacy, not the subject of romantic poetry, but it makes Brian feel soft, to be that close. Pat starts to stroke his fingers through Brian’s hair, and Brian finds himself almost choking back a sob. He hadn't known things were hitting him this hard. Pat must notice, but he just keeps stroking, keeps moving Brian’s hair in comforting patterns and bit by bit, Brian melts into him.

"It's soft" Pat says, quietly as if speaking any louder will shock Brian, as if he's a wild animal. He might be right. "Your hair, I mean.” Pat pauses, seemingly contemplating his words. It’s something Brian hadn’t expected out of Pat, but he’s careful about his words. “You can come stay at my place tonight, if you like." Pat finally settles on and Brian feels his shoulders relax just that tiniest bit more, feels himself melt into Pat.

"Thank you" Brian says, and means it more than he usually does.

 

They stumble through the office, and take the subway to Pat’s house. New York is never empty, not like Baltimore, but tonight it feels calm, like everyone around them is just as tired, just as close to falling into each other as they are. It’s easy to love New York like this, easy to love the simple peace that reigns, the way people accept those around them with the same grace they accept the weather. Brian never stops missing home, but it’s easier to find love in his heart for somewhere new like this.

Being with Pat also makes it easier, it’s easier to love this city when he’s pressed close to someone he likes. He likes the way Pat takes the city as it is, likes the way he accepts what happens around him unquestioningly, the way he’s not afraid to hold Brian’s hand, and pull him along. He likes to hold hands, likes the warmth and solidity.

It’s not far to Pat’s place, or at least, it’s closer than Brian’s place, but that’s hardly saying much. Brian’s commute is the stuff of nightmares, and it’s only how much he loves his job that makes him happy to get out of the bed in the morning, and so it’s nice to think about getting up tomorrow at a normal time, being able to go into work with Pat, and the easy companionship that entails.

 

Pat’s cat meows as they open the door to the apartment, and she curls herself around their feet. Pat scratches her head, and goes to check her food and water, while Brian plants himself firmly on the floor and pets her, as much as she’ll let him. She’s a pretty friendly cat, so that ends up being quite a lot. He finds he misses Moose a lot. Pat grins at him from the kitchen and Brian finds himself smiling back, helplessly, the small smile he finds on his face whenever he really likes someone.

Pat holds up a bottle of wine, and Brian gives him the thumbs up, and watches as Pat moves around his kitchen, grabbing wine glasses and pouring the wine. Brian knows nothing about wine, bar that he can drink it, sometimes in frightening quantities. Brian gets up when Pat walks past him, and follows him to the couch, sitting next to him and holding the wine glass that’s passed to him.

“Thanks, again. You didn’t have to do this, any of this.” Brian says, feeling a sudden pressing need to make sure Pat knows how much he appreciates him.

“I wanted to” Pat says, “I needed someone to watch these old Seinfeld episodes with me, anyway.”

And so they watch old Seinfeld episodes. About halfway through The Strike, Brian has a sudden realization that he doesn’t know entirely why he’s doing it.

“Uh, why are we watching Seinfeld, actually?” Brian doesn’t mind Seinfeld, much in the way most people don’t mind it, but he never goes out of his way to watch it, and Pat seeming to have all of it on DVD is mildly concerning.

“I’ve been thinking about trying to make my family celebrate Festivus with me, when I next go home” Pat says, which is an answer Brian couldn’t have expected, and would sound bizarre out of anyone else’s mouth, but from Pat it rings true. “I’ve already instituted the clock, which my mom hates, but I’ve been debating adding the feats of strength into it. That said, my mom’s definitely the head of the household, and I’m not sure I could fight her.”

“I know what you mean, I don’t think I could fight my mom, I love her too much.” Brian says.

“Well, that too, but mostly she’s too strong for me to fight” Pat replies, totally flat. It’s that that sets Brian over the edge, and he starts cackling. Pat just smiles at him.

He laughs for a long time, like it was held up in him waiting to come out, like he’s been hidden within himself, and that with this one off-hand comment, he’s escaped.

“What?” says Pat, clearly bemused, his eyebrows raised, and he looks terribly handsome.

“I just-” Brian pauses, runs his hands through his hair, and scootches himself closer to Pat. “I just really like you”

Pat smiles at that, big, and a little crooked, and it’s unbelievably charming.

“I like you too.”

Brian leans on Pat, puts his head on his shoulder, and relaxes into him. He wants more nights like these, and for now, just this is enough. Pat puts Seinfeld back on, and gently, gently, the constellations align.

**Author's Note:**

> Title comes from See The Day, by BDG himself. Find it on bandcamp. Writen while listening to Going To Port Washington by The Mountain Goats, along with See The Day.


End file.
